My Lady, Jean Louise
by J-walker
Summary: Fast Forward the clock by 10 years and what do you have? Dill and Jem getting off a train, welcomed by a lady who they both know so well. ;   A One-Shot.


**Okay so this is in Dill's POV…woo hoo! My first To Kill a Mockingbird story! Lol…who knew I'd do a fanfic on a book I read as a school text. My English teacher would probably read this going "There is only a 2.5% chance that Childhood friends become lifelong partners! This could never happen!" And I'd say in Reply, "Mr.R …Scout and Dill are meant for each other so just hush!" Well…actually Mr.R's pretty scary so I probably wouldn't be saying 'and that's that' to him…but I'm totally not lying when I say they were MEANT for each other. Right readers?**

It's October, 1945 and the war is finally over! I've been fighting alongside Jeremy or Jem as I used to call him, for the most of the period and somehow we managed to stay alive…it helped we were in the navy rather than the army. Even with his dodgy elbow he was accepted, I was still young looking so the authorities didn't allow me to join with Jeremy first off, but after a couple of years of strenuous training they accepted me. I met Jeremy almost by accident at the end of my first month at a small bar like set up in a foreign country. Since childhood I have always looked up to him and couldn't believe my biggest adventure yet was to be shared with him...but he was almost a different person when I met him. I remember ten years ago when what put fear in my heart was that of being neglected by my parents and seeing a black man being put to death unjustly, now war had taken its place.

But the Tom Robinson case…now there's an event that I will never forget, it was a horrible affair that although is not the most fearful thing, can still bring strong emotions to my heart. I was in Maycomb at the time, with my favourite people, Jeremy and his little sister Scout. Scout…my childhood sweetheart. Well she was a lady now, Miss. Jean Louise Finch. I never thought I'd see the day when she would wear dresses but Jeremy informed me that she too had changed and in a matter of hours I was to see this change for myself. I am technically engaged to Jean, but that proposal was said more than 10 years ago.

I was heading back to Maycomb with Jeremy, not only to spend my time in one of my most favourite places but to renew my proposal with my sweetheart. It's not like her uncles' relationship with Miss. Maudie Atkinson, a woman who had baked numerous cakes for the three of us in our childhood.

During the war, I had met countless of women but none struck my fancy. It got to the point where my fellow soldiers would tease me to no end on whether I was a man or not. In truth I still had feelings for my best friend's sister. He doesn't know yet, Jeremy that is. Here we are on the train back to Maycomb and he has no idea that his little sister is going to be engaged…again, in the first hour of our arrival.

"Well Charles, here we are! Scout should be waitin' with the taxi for us somewhere out there." I remember back when I used to visit Maycomb it would be my Aunt Rachel who would pick me up, but she had passed away...I received a letter when it happened during my period as a navy officer, my first and last. I stepped out of the train and who was there like Jeremy had said? Scout…no…Jean-Louise. I almost started crying but after the war I was and will always be, a man. I may not have fought in the front lines but I would have been a fool if I said I didn't fear being hit by the ever present bombs.

"Jem!" She ran up to us and gave Jeremy a hug first, I let my disappointment flow away…he was her brother, of course she was going to greet him first. While she hugged her brother I couldn't help letting my eyes linger on her, she had grown into a lady, it was true. She was wearing a pale blue dress that complimented her complexion but could not compare to her twinkling eyes. I coughed once and she released her smiling brother. Still in a haze of excitement she turned to me…I could see her smile in full now and it was enough to stop my heart for a second longer than necessary. What made me smile though was that I was finally taller than her. As a boy I would anguish at times that she would remain taller than me but just before I joined the navy I had finally hit my growth spurt. "Hi, Dill." I had originally planned to wait till we had reached their home but I was too ecstatic to wait. I decided to be spontaneous and knelt where I was in front of her, forgetting we were in a public train station.

"Miss. Jean Louise, will you-" But I was stopped by her concerned motor mouth.

"Dill? What happened! Did you injure your knee? Why aren't you standing?" Jeremy of course being the near graduate of a law degree that he was had one eyebrow raised at my kneeling position…well apparently she didn't know so that was okay.

"No…Jean, listen." And there went her mouth…

"THIS is why Atticus was against you both joining. I can't even believe you gave up on law school Jem, help him up for Johnson's sake!" Johnson? Wasn't that the name of the mad dog they told me about all those years ago? I'm actually surprised I remember.

"We've talked about this, little lady. Atticus knows why I joined and he understands. Now hush and listen to Dill before he falls. I think he's been kneeling long enough now." Well she did hush and stared at me listening patiently. The more I think about it, she would make an incredible mother. She was loving, beautiful, caring and the best school teacher Maycomb let alone the whole state of Alabama had ever seen.

"I'm listening Dill…if you're not injured then…wait…" her eyes were widening…well so much for being spontaneous.

"Jean-Louise, I have known you for a long time now. You have gone from being the only girl I could ever love to be the only lady I could ever love. Will you please-" She stopped smiling and put her hands on her hips.

"Just wait a minute Charles Harris Baker, what makes you think I'm going to allow you to propose to me? Again! And just who said I was a lady?" Well I was officially in a state of silence when she herself started to kneel to the ground. In the background I heard Jeremy groaning before I blocked out all noises of the train station. I realised as she lifted her skirts to kneel down that she did so in a very graceful manner, but what surprised me was that she had breeches underneath. She caught me staring and her incredible smile grew sheepish.

"I never did get used to wearing a dress on its own." I grinned. Yes, this was the lady I loved.

"Dill, I have known you for a long time now. You have gone from being one scrawny little boy to being a man who is FINALLY taller than me." Our smiles widened as she kept going. "You have been in our lives during the hard times and have always been considered part of the family in some way. So I ask you now to make it official…Charles Harris Baker…Dill, will you marry me?"

"I do." Her eyebrows went up and she started laughing. I looked confused and turned to Jeremy who was smiling as well.

"I think you're getting ahead of yourself there Dill, I believe the correct reply would be a simple 'yes'. Save the 'I do' part for the wedding." I mentally slapped myself while helping Jean-Louise to her feet, the official proposal and I say the wrong thing...then again I didn't expect her to do the proposing either.

"Well then, I think most of the people at the station have had a good laugh." Jean and I looked to where Jeremy was staring and noticed a somewhat largish crowd that were split between smiling and giving disapproving looks at us. Well hey, story of our lives.

"Oh and Dill? On the invitations I will NOT be referred to as Miss. Jean Louise. I am NOT at the classroom so I shall be called Scout. Got that?" We went to collect our bags laughing at what Jeremy said next,

"Well I'm glad Aunt Alexandra wasn't here to see this."

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